Paetongtarn believes Thai-Cambodian spats stem from call scams crackdowns

Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said today she believes Thailand’s ongoing conflicts with Cambodia stemmed from her government’s crackdowns on call scam centers.

She said Cambodia was offended by a trilateral agreement Thailand recently made with Laos and Myanmar to jointly crack down on cross-border call scams centers.

She said Cambodia felt left out and wanted to be a partner to the agreement.

“However, when my Cabinet then agreed to invite Cambodia to join the agreement, it turned down the offer,” said Paetongtarn who currently doubles as culture minister.

She said even though she has been suspended from performing her duty as prime minister, she still closely monitors the ongoing armed clashes on the Thai-Cambodian border.

“When I look back, it dawns on me that Cambodia could have been offended by the trilateral agreement to crack down on call scams centers, leading to the ongoing conflicts,” she said.

The Shinawatra family is known for its once close relationship with Cambodian strongman Hun Sen and his son, Prime Minister Hun Manet before it went sour.

The turning point was Paetongtarn’s disastrous phone conversation with Hun Sen in mid-June during which she criticized a Thai regional army commander for his strong views on Cambodia.